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☆ Mega El Niño events may have caused planet’s greatest mass extinction
▼ + stars: | 2024-09-12 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

The El Niño of 252 million years ago would have originated in the Panthalassic Ocean, a body of water much larger than today’s Pacific that could hold more heat, which in turn would have strengthened and sustained El Niño effects. The planet had experienced similar episodes earlier but they hadn’t triggered a mass extinction. A prolonged and intense El Niño also explained why extinctions had begun on land before they occurred in the ocean, the study said. This data showed how temperature rose at different latitudes as the mass extinction unfolded. El Niño events today are known to cause coral bleaching and mass mortality of fish, the study noted, but the ecological impact and future trajectory of El Niño events in a warming climate are unknown.

Persons: ”, Paul Wignall, David Bond, Paul Wignall El, Alex Farnsworth, El, ” Wignall, Niño, “, Yadong Sun, Niños, Wignall, Farnsworth, Alfio Alessandro Chiarenza, Chiarenza, wasn’t Organizations: CNN, University of Leeds, El, University of Hull, UK’s University of Bristol, China University of Geosciences, University of Bristol, Royal Society Newton International, University College London’s, supervolcanoes Locations: what’s, Russia, United Kingdom, Ellesmere, El, Pacific, Wuhan

☆ Mars could be creating 'giant whirlpools' deep within our planet's oceans
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-13 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Mars may be 140 million miles away, but its gravitational pull could be impacting Earth's oceans. Scientists at the University of Sydney in Australia believe the red planet's tug is creating "giant whirlpools" in the oceans called eddies, which can shift the deep-sea floor. This, they claim, is part of a 2.4-million-year climate "grand cycle" on Earth that has been ongoing for at least 40 million years. The red planet's orbit and ours are locked in an intricate dance, and every so often, these line up so that Mars' gravitational pull on Earth is just a little more intense — this is called resonance. This information is crucial when refining models helping us see how our planet's intricate climate will progress over time.

Persons: Adriana Dutkiewicz, NASA's, Dietmar Müller, Malin, Matthew England, Benjamin Mills, wasn't, Mills Organizations: Service, University of Sydney, Business, NASA's Goddard Space, geosciences, Nature Communications, Mars NASA, JPL, Systems, University of New, New, University of Leeds Locations: Australia, Japan, New, University of New South Wales, Sydney

☆ Are we in the Anthropocene Epoch? Not so fast, geologists say
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-05 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Scientists have voted against a proposal to declare a new geological epoch called the Anthropocene to reflect how profoundly human activity has altered the planet. The vote followed a 15-year process to select a geological site that best captures humanity’s impact on the planet. Some experts argued that the start of the Anthropocene could be better defined in other ways, such as the beginning of the Industrial Revolution. “This is the commission’s expert group for this interval of geological time and we are bound by its decision. Regardless of whether the term is officially classified as a geological epoch, Anthropocene is already widely in use, Cohen noted.

Persons: Kim Cohen, ”, Cohen, Phil Gibbard, eon, Colin Waters, Waters, …, David Harper, ” Harper, hadn’t, “ Organizations: CNN —, International Union of Geological Sciences, CNN Tuesday, geosciences, Utrecht University, Scott Polar Research, University of Cambridge, Geologists, University of Leicester, Durham University, International, of Locations: Ontario, Netherlands, United Kingdom

☆ Last Chance Lake: A ‘soda lake’ in North America could point to the origin of life on Earth
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-17 | by ( Ayurella Horn-Muller | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Last Chance LakeLast Chance Lake is no more than 1 foot deep. Haas displays a piece of dry-season lake crust taken from Last Chance Lake in September 2022. Last Chance Lake isn’t 4 billion years old — in fact, it’s estimated to have been around less than 10,000 years. Past studies suggest a primordial version of the soda lake may very well have included the substance. “Understanding how life originated on Earth has this importance for our search for life outside of Earth,” Haas told CNN.

Persons: —, David Catling, “, ” Catling, It’s, Sebastian Haas, Haas, David C, isn’t, ”, ” Haas, Catling, Charles Darwin, Matthew Pasek, Pasek, they’re, Woodward Fischer, Ayurella, Muller Organizations: CNN, British Columbia, University of Washington, geosciences, University of South, California Institute of Technology, “, Climate Central Locations: Canadian, British, British Columbia, Chance, Yellowstone, University of South Florida, Axios, ”

At least 112 people have been killed by wildfires in central Chile, leading its president to declare two days of national mourning. Scientists say climate change makes the heat waves and drought now hitting South America more likely — and both contribute to wildfires by drying out the plants that feed the blazes. “Climate change has made droughts more common,” said Mitchard. Climate change makes stronger El Niños more likely, said Mitchard, and droughts caused by it are likelier to be more intense. And the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has found that globally, extreme heat waves happen five times more often because of human-caused global warming.

Persons: Edward Mitchard, ”, We’ve, Mitchard, — Organizations: South America, University of Edinburgh School of Geosciences, it's, World Resources Institute, Associated Press Locations: Chile, Colombia, CHILE, Santiago, Scotland, South America, Belgium, AP.org

☆ Sanfordiacaulis: New ancient tree species looks like it could be from the mind of Dr. Seuss
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Ayurella Horn-Muller | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

The authors said these new and unusual fossil trees not only bear a surprising shape reminiscent of a Dr. Seuss illustration, they reveal clues about a period of life on Earth of which we know little. Few tree fossils that date back to Earth’s earliest forests have ever been found, according to Gastaldo. Most ancient tree specimens are relatively small, he noted, and often discovered in the form of a fossilized trunk with a stump or root system attached. Wilf noted via email that the “unusual” new fossil tree was a relic of a time period from which there are almost no tree fossils. The peculiar set of tree fossils presents proof of a “failed experiment of science and evolution,” Stimson added.

Persons: Seuss, ”, Robert Gastaldo, sedimentologist, “, Coauthors Olivia King, Matthew Stimson, Gastaldo, “ gobsmacked, Tim, Laurie Sanford, Stimson, ” Stimson, Peter Wilf, Wilf, ” Wilf, Dr, King, “ We’re, fossilization, ” Gastaldo Organizations: CNN, Colby College, New Brunswick Museum, geosciences, Pennsylvania State University Locations: Canadian, New Brunswick, Waterville , Maine, paleobotanist

☆ Greenland Glaciers Melt Five Times Faster Than 20 Years Ago
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Nov. | At A.M. | ) www.usnews.com time to read: +2 min

By Johannes BirkebaekCOPENHAGEN (Reuters) - Global warming has increased the speed at which glaciers in Greenland are melting by fivefold over the last 20 years, scientists from the University of Copenhagen said on Friday. Greenland's ice melt is of particular concern, as the ancient ice sheet holds enough water to raise sea levels by at least 20 feet (6 meters) if it were to melt away entirely. "I believe we can prepare for those glaciers to continue to melt at increasing speeds," Olesen said. Glaciers in Greenland are often used to anticipate the effects of climate change on Greenland's ice sheet. The Greenland ice sheet contributed 17.3% of the observed rise in sea level between 2006 and 2018 and glaciers have contributed 21%.

Persons: Johannes Birkebaek COPENHAGEN, Anders Anker Bjork, Bjork, Jørgen Eivind Olesen, Olesen, William Colgan, Johannes Birkebaek, Barbara Lewis Organizations: University of Copenhagen, geosciences, Reuters, European Union, Climate Institute, Aarhus University, Geological Survey Locations: Greenland, Denmark

☆ Greenland glaciers melt five times faster than 20 years ago
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-10 | by ( Johannes Birkebaek | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Valleys cut by glaciers of the Greenland Ice Sheet along the mountains of Greenland, August 3, 2022. Greenland's ice melt is of particular concern, as the ancient ice sheet holds enough water to raise sea levels by at least 20 feet (6 meters) if it were to melt away entirely. "I believe we can prepare for those glaciers to continue to melt at increasing speeds," Olesen said. Glaciers in Greenland are often used to anticipate the effects of climate change on Greenland's ice sheet. The Greenland ice sheet contributed 17.3% of the observed rise in sea level between 2006 and 2018 and glaciers have contributed 21%.

Persons: Jim Urquhart, Anders Anker Bjork, Bjork, Jørgen Eivind Olesen, Olesen, William Colgan, Johannes Birkebaek, Barbara Lewis Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, University of Copenhagen, geosciences, Reuters, European Union, Climate Institute, Aarhus University, Geological Survey, Thomson Locations: Greenland, Denmark

☆ Earth's inner core is more like a ball of butter than a solid metal sphere, a new study suggests
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-06 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Scientists have long thought Earth's inner core is like a huge solid metal ball. It could help explain why Earth's magnetic field is so weird. Jung-Fu Lin / UT Jackson School of GeosciencesThe Earth's inner mush revealedA 2021 study had already started to question the big-iron-ball assumption. Seismic waves, they found, weren't really going through the Earth in a way consistent with a fully solid core. AdvertisementAdvertisementIt recreated the intense pressure and temperature conditions found in the inner core inside a lab, and combined that data with a much more advanced computer model.

Persons: Youjun Zhang, We've, that's, Jung, Fu, Lin, Fu Lin, weren't, Jessica Irving, Zhang Organizations: Service, University of Texas, UT Jackson School of Geosciences, University of Bristol, Science, National Academy of Sciences Locations: Sichuan, shockwaves, England

☆ New fossils reveal specialized eating technique of unusual ancient marine reptile
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-08 | by ( Ashley Strickland | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

CNN —An unusual ancient marine reptile may have gulped down tons of shrimplike prey using a feeding technique similar to one used by some modern whales. Fang et al/Courtesy University of BristolBut there hasn’t been much evidence in the fossil record for ancient reptiles using filter feeding, until now. These structures are similar to what’s seen in baleen whales, which have strips of keratin instead of teeth. “Baleen whales have grooves along the jaws to support curtains of baleen, long thin strips of keratin, the protein that makes hair, feathers and fingernails. It’s possible that the marine reptile didn’t start out with this ability.

Persons: Hupehsuchus nanchangensis, ”, Long Cheng, et, Li Tian, Hupehsuchus, Zichen Fang, Michael Benton, It’s Organizations: CNN, BMC, Wuhan Center, China Geological Survey, University of Bristol, China University of Geosciences, University of Bristol’s School of Earth Sciences Locations: China, Hubei province, China University of Geosciences Wuhan

☆ Big-headed Jurassic sea turtle’s fossil is the most complete ever found
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-30 | by ( Mindy Weisberger | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Few complete fossils of this Jurassic sea turtle, named Solnhofia parsonsi, have been discovered. Today’s marine turtle species all have elongated, rigid flippers to propel them through the ocean depths. But the newly described fossil’s limbs were stumpier than those of modern sea turtles relative to its body size. An artistic reconstruction shows the extinct sea turtle in its coastal marine environment. The newly described fossil presents a far more complete view of those limbs, showing that they differed dramatically from the extremities of sea turtles alive today.

Persons: Solnhofia, parsonsi, ”, Felix Augustin, Augustin, Márton Rabi, Peter Nickolaus S, ” Augustin, Rabi, ” Rabi, Mindy Weisberger Organizations: CNN, geosciences, University of Tübingen, University of Tübingen’s, Scientific Locations: Europe, Germany, Bavaria, Switzerland

☆ There's an enormous gravity hole in the middle of the Indian Ocean. Scientists say they've finally worked out what's causing it.
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-07 | by ( Marianne Guenot | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

There's a gravity hole in the Indian Ocean, where ocean levels are about 300 feet lower than surrounding areas. The gravity hole may have been caused by an ancient ocean bed that sank millions of years ago. But a new study suggests researchers should have been looking around, not under, the gravity hole to solve the mystery of how it formed. The blue dot over the Indian Ocean is a gravity 'hole' that has scientists baffled. But scientists have struggled to explain the gravity hole in the Indian Ocean, known as the Indian Ocean geoid low.

Persons: Attreyee Ghosh, Debanjan Pal, Steinberger, Himangshu Paul Organizations: Service, ESA, Research, of Geosciences, NASA, Goddard Space, Indian Institute of Science, National Geophysical Research Institute, New Locations: Bangalore, Africa, Australia, India, Eastern Africa

☆ Rising sea levels may have forced the Vikings out of a successful settlement
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Katie Hunt | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Why they abandoned a successful settlement is a mystery that historians never have been able to fully explain. The idea that sea levels would have been rising as temperatures fell is a little counterintuitive, according to the researchers. However, Earth’s oceans aren’t like a bathtub, and the study noted that changes in sea level don’t affect all areas equally. The Greenland Ice Sheet readvanced during Viking occupation of the eastern settlement and peaked in the Little Ice Age. That advance caused sea level rise near the ice margins because of the sinking of Earth’s crust, according to the study.

☆ Study explains how primordial life survived on 'Snowball Earth'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Will Dunham | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Life somehow managed to survive during this time called "Snowball Earth," and a new study offers a deeper understanding as to why. "Our study shows that, at least near the end of the Marinoan 'Snowball Earth' event, habitable areas extended to mid-latitude oceans, much larger than previously thought. And the Earth spiraled into Snowball Earth conditions," Virginia Tech geobiologist and study co-author Shuhai Xiao said. Multicellular organisms including red algae, green algae and fungi emerged before the Cryogenian and survived "Snowball Earth." "It is fair to say that the 'Snowball Earth' events were significant challenges to life on Earth," Xiao added.

☆ UK government greenlights first new coal mine in three decades
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The UK has greenlit a controversial plan to open the country’s first new coal mine in three decades, a little more than a year after the nation tried to convince the world to ditch coal at the COP26 climate talks in Glasgow. Committee chairman Lord Deben said in a statement: “Phasing out coal use is the clearest requirement of the global effort towards Net Zero. We condemn, therefore, the Secretary of State’s decision to consent to a new deep coal mine in Cumbria, contrary to our previous advice. This decision grows global emissions and undermines UK efforts to achieve Net Zero.”The mine’s approval was also met with fierce criticism from scientists and environmentalists. Its opponents argue these jobs may not be secure, given the huge momentum in Europe to phase out coal.

Many of the most destructive and potentially deadly impacts of a hurricane — including storm surge, flooding and rainfall — are not accounted for in a storm's category number. "Hurricane Ian is a very large, slow-moving hurricane. "There have been several alternative scales proposed over the years and none have gained enough attention or traction by the National Hurricane Center," Collins said. "It is important to have such evidence before even proposing to the National Hurricane Center that this should be considered as a replacement." Kantha said the National Hurricane Center acts conservatively and carefully with changes, particularly those with legal implications.

☆ Millennials and Gen Z want to stop a climate catastrophe. But first they have to get elected.
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( Eliza Relman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +24 min

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a California Democrat, told young climate activists in 2019, "You didn't vote for me." AP Photo/Gemunu AmarasingheBut most policy debates aren't genuinely existential in the way climate change is. "Younger Democrats tend to have a much more friendly relationship and response to the party's activist class than older Democrats do." Fossil-fuel interests have played a central role in stymieing progress on climate change for decades. Nearly a decade later, Trump ran for and won the presidency — with Gingrich's early and staunch support — while calling climate change a "hoax."

☆ Fact Check-Statue of Liberty photos do not prove sea level rise is insignificant
▼ + stars: | 2021-11-04 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

However, sea level rise to date has already been shown to have contributed to catastrophic damage done by storms and flooding, and accelerating sea level rise projected over the next century is expected to worsen the problem. “No one is calling the sea level rise experienced so far catastrophic, but global sea level rise has accelerated since about 1970 and will continue to accelerate until global temperatures are stabilized. Sea level rise is computed using monthly or annual averages to avoid this confusion,” he said (here). The analyses forecast accelerating sea level rise in the region, with a possible rise of about 2 feet to as much as 9 feet by 2100. Two side-by-side images of the Statue of Liberty are not evidence of the degree of sea level rise, or that sea level rise to date has had no catastrophic impact.

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